Best Tools to Find YouTube Influencers: A Comprehensive Comparison

Introduction

YouTube influencer marketing continues to deliver results for brands that want to drive awareness, conversions and long-term engagement. But finding the right creators can be time-consuming without the right tools.

In this article, we compare five of the most widely used platforms — ChannelCrawler , Modash , BuzzSumo , Heepsy and Upfluence — to help you choose the best tool for your campaign needs. Whether you want verified emails, in-depth metrics or platform integration, this guide will help you evaluate your options.

Why Discovery Tools Matter in YouTube Influencer Marketing

Searching for influencers manually on YouTube is inefficient and often unreliable. Discovery platforms speed up the process and give you access to insights you would struggle to gather yourself. These include:

• Filtering by niche, country, engagement rate or language

• Viewing real-time performance metrics

• Accessing contact information such as verified email addresses

The right tool can help you move from research to outreach in minutes instead of hours.

1. ChannelCrawler: Built for YouTube Discovery and Outreach

ChannelCrawler is a dedicated discovery tool designed specifically for YouTube. It is not a generic platform trying to cover all social networks. Instead, it focuses entirely on helping customers find YouTube creators efficiently and scale their outreach.

It includes access to over 160 million YouTube channels , with data updated regularly. A key advantage of ChannelCrawler is its modular approach. You can search for influencers and download email contacts as separate services , which means you only pay for what you need at a very reasonable price.

Its AI categories feature allows you to search by pre-defined niches, while advanced filters let you refine results by subscriber range, location, language, and engagement. The platform also offers a credit-based system for verified email downloads. This makes it ideal for teams that want flexibility or are working with different campaign scales.

A free demo plan is available without a credit card. The Power Plan includes additional email credits, extended exports, and access to API functionality (enterprise plan only).

Who it suits : People who sell to creators, platform owners, influencer and digital marketers, agencies, MCN.

Pricing overview :

• Free demo plan available

• Paid plans up to $195 per month or custom based on your needs.

• Email credit bundles with bulk discounts (as low as $0.10 per contact)

2. Modash: Performance Insights for Multi-Platform Campaigns

Modash is a full influencer marketing platform that supports YouTube, Instagram and TikTok. It offers detailed creator insights, audience demographics and campaign tracking. Its standout feature is Shopify integration, which allows e-commerce teams to manage discount codes, product gifting and influencer sales attribution in one place.

However, email access is limited to subscription tiers, and user quotas apply to the number of profiles and emails available. For YouTube-specific campaigns, the platform may feel heavy if you do not need the e-commerce integrations.

Starting at $199 per month , Modash is best suited for brands with ongoing influencer workflows, particularly those with Shopify stores.

3. BuzzSumo: Ideal for Content-Led Discovery

BuzzSumo is well known in the world of SEO and content strategy. Its influencer discovery tools focus on helping users find creators who are sharing or engaging with specific topics. It is especially effective for PR outreach or identifying journalists and bloggers.

However, BuzzSumo is more of a content research tool than an outreach solution. Plans start from $199 per month and are best suited for teams that value topic-based influence over direct contact features.

4. Heepsy: Lightweight Discovery for Beginners

Heepsy is a user-friendly platform designed for quick influencer research. It includes filters for country, audience size and niche. YouTube support is included, though most of the platform’s functionality is geared towards Instagram and there are only 4 millions YouTube channels in their database.

While affordable — with plans starting at $69 per month — Heepsy’s data quality and export features are limited. Verified contact data is not always available, and filtering options are more basic compared to tools like ChannelCrawler or Modash.

This is a useful tool for casual users or influencer marketers, but may not suit agencies or performance-driven teams.

5. Upfluence: Enterprise-Grade Influencer CRM

Upfluence is a fully integrated platform for large brands that manage long-term influencer relationships. It includes influencer discovery, performance tracking, affiliate link generation, contract tools and campaign reporting. Integration with CRMs and e-commerce systems is also a strength.

That said, it comes with enterprise pricing and complexity. Plans are custom quoted and typically cost several thousand dollars per month. This platform is most useful for in-house marketing teams with dedicated influencer roles.

If you are looking for quick outreach or flexible pricing, Upfluence may be excessive.

Tool Comparison Summary

Conclusion: Which Tool is Right for You?

If your main goal is to discover and contact YouTube influencers quickly, ChannelCrawler offers the most focused and flexible solution. It provides accurate data, real-time insights and verified email access with transparent, credit-based pricing.

For cross-platform campaigns or e-commerce teams using Shopify, Modash offers useful integration features. BuzzSumo is best for content-led strategies and topic research, while Heepsy is appropriate for smaller-scale users. Upfluence suits large organisations managing long-term creator partnerships.

For outreach-first campaigns focused on YouTube creators, ChannelCrawler stands out as the most practical and efficient choice.

Explore a free demo and try a search now.